Lawyer for Delphi Murders Suspect Claims 'Odinists' Killed Teens: 'Common Sense and Logic'

10/24/2024 12:36 PM

Richard Allen, charged with the 2017 murders of Abigail Williams and Liberty German, claims the girls were actually murdered by believers of the pagan religion

Defense attorneys for the man accused of killing two teenage girls on an Indiana hiking trail in 2017 filed a motion to allow them to present a theory that Odinists, members of a pagan religion linked with White nationalism, actually committed the murders.

Richard Allen is charged with four counts of murder in connection with the February 2017 deaths of Abigail "Abby" Williams, 13, and Liberty "Libby" German, 14, who were found dead near a creek in Delphi, Ind. 

Allen was arrested and charged in 2022, five years after the murders, with police saying they'd searched his home and found several knives and a gun that was allegedly linked to a bullet found at the scene, according to the Associated Press. He has pleaded not guilty.

In the lead up to Allen's trial, which began last week, his attorneys have argued in court filings, previously reported by the AP, Fox 59 and the Journal & Courier, that the girls were killed by Odinists as part of a ritual sacrifice.

Related: Delphi Suspect Claims White Nationalist Pagans Killed 2 Teens — Despite Allegedly Confessing to Wife

Judge Frances Gull previously blocked the defense from introducing the Odinism theory to the jury in a September ruling, citing a lack of evidence, according to court records. But a new motion filed by the defense on Wednesday, Oct. 23, is once again asking to present at least parts of the theory, according to the Indianapolis Star, WTHR and Fox 59.

The recent motion comes after a crime scene investigator testified that branches were found on top of Abby and Libby's bodies but that the bodies were not completely concealed, WTHR reported.

"... the sticks on the girls appear to be arranged in a pattern/arrangement or (at a minimum) using a person's own eyeballs, common sense, logic and reason could cause a reasonable person to believe that the sticks were formed into some pattern/arrangement and weren't being used to conceal the bodies," the filing stated, according to the outlet.

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In a previous defense filing obtained by Fox 59 and the Star, Allen's attorneys claimed there was evidence of a ritualistic killing. They claimed that the girls' bodies were found posed with branches that were "intentionally placed in a very specific and arranged pattern," and that one of the girls' blood was found painted on trees in a symbol resembling the letter "F." According to the reported filing, the symbol "F" is associated with Odinism.

It is not clear when the judge will rule on the motion.

Prosecutors have claimed that Allen had confessed to the murders in a jailhouse call with his wife, according to the AP, CNN and Fox 59. But the defense has tried to get the alleged confession thrown out, claiming that Allen was in a poor mental state at the time.

During opening statements at Allen's trial, prosecutors said Abby and Libby were found with their throats cut, according to the AP, Fox 59 and the Star.

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